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Unless the federal and state governments stopped playing lip services and take seriously agricultural programmes in Nigeria, hunger, hardship and high cost of living would continue to plague the citizens. This was the position of scientists and agricultural experts in different interview with Sunday Telegraph. The experts, over the hard- ships occasioned by food in- security, as well as the high cost of living across the country, were unanimous in their submission that successive governments in Nigeria have paid lip service to agriculture and did not show any serious commitment to making the nation self-sufficient in food production as they misplaced their priorities.
A System Agronomist and Former Country Representative, the International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT, Kano), Dr. Hakeem Ajeigbe, regretted that the Kadawa Irrigation Master Plan initiated by the administration of former Governor Audu Bako was yet to be completed, let alone replicated in the northern states. He said that although the current food shortage is a global phenomenon, Nigeria’s case would have been mitigated by the Kadawa Master Plan, which was conceptualized to feed at least, 50 per cent of Nigeria’s population and take care of other African countries. He said: “First food insecurity is a serious challenge facing humanity worldwide. Nigeria is not in isolation.
We are better than most of our African brothers and even many of Europe. The cost of living has gone up all over the world because of disruptions in the value chains as a result of war/insecurity, climate change and pandemic. “As we talk, Britain is in re- cession. Food insecurity in Nigeria is more perceived than real. Go to the Niger Republic border to see the large scale of outflow of food. Weak Naira has encouraged outflow of food instead of inflow.” Also, he said that Nigerian scientists, researchers and agriculturalists were doing their best but there is a limit to what they can do as lack of funding is hampering their efforts from being commercialized. He continued: “We have research results that are being applied with positive impact, but the question is: at what scale are they being used? Do we have the infrastructure to back up and ensure we get the full benefit? The answer is no.
These results need to be applied on a large scale and with infrastructural support A former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, has said that the current Nigerian constitution would not adequately address the nation’s economic predicaments and other myriad of challenges. Anyaoku stated this in his country home, Obosi village of Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State. He said the current challenges being faced in the nation like poverty, insecurity, and dilapidated infrastructure among others were serious challenges bedevelling the country. “I am on record for saying that these challenges cannot be effectively addressed under the constitution and governance system we have at the moment.
“We cannot effectively address these challenges that have assumed nationwide dimension especially insecurity which has pervaded the Northern part of the country and other communities”, he said. He stressed that the current constitution was a departure from the con- stitution that the nation’s founding fathers negotiated and agreed upon. “The constitution for a pluralistic state as Nigeria, we have to return to those principles of the constitution as earlier agreed by our founding fathers. “Until we do that, I am afraid that we cannot effectively deal with the challenges facing the nation,” he added. When asked about the Monday stay-at-home ob- served in the South East region and the negative effects on the economy, the elder statesman said that the sit- at-home was causing great damage to the economy of the country.
“The stay-at-home is doing great damage to the economy of the South East region. I do not support the idea. I think it is doing great dam- age to the economy. We have to deal with the root cause of stay-at-home, which is the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu. “Notwithstanding the fact that the court of law had ordered his release, that word gives those who advocate and participate in stay-at- home the reason for doing so. “I think that the cause of the stay-at-home should be addressed. I do not think that the stay-at-home should be maintained, it should be stopped,” he suggested. On Ito-Ogoto traditional event that was being celebrated every three years in the community, he observed that those who attained the age of 80 years were celebrating.
He added that the Igbo culture respects age, because it was believed that age brings wisdom. for us to see the effect at the national level. Adewunmi Dedeke, a Pro- fessor of Animal Eco Physiol- ogy at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-–Iwoye, Ogun State, who said that Re- searchers can only do much research but combining that with commercialisation was not easy. He said: “Usually, research- es are done at micro-levels enough for the researcher to earn his or her promotion in the place of work, whether university or research institution. But when it comes to scaling up such research to macro levels, it requires serious funding and commitment on the part of such would-be funders to support the researchers be- cause research is not a walk in the park.
“However, despite the challenges to scaling up, several improved varieties of rice grain have been released by NACGRAB to farmers. “In addition to these, improved varieties of yam, sorghum, millet, and tomatoes have also been released. In my university, we produced an improved breed of the lo- cal chicken (Alpha Chicken) which grows as large as the imported types within a short time. Information on breeding of fish, catfish and tilapia is out there and a lot of breeders are utilizing this information. “The efforts of IITA researchers have also been responsible for the improvements of crops such as banana, plantain, cassava, cowpea, maize, soybean, and yam in Nigeria.”
These improved/high- yielding varieties are regularly released to farmers and farmers are also helped in environmental management too. So, when it comes to the outcome of research conducted by dons/re- searchers, especially about food, quite a number are out there.” To a Senior Lecturer, Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development, University of Ibadan, Dr. Idris Olabode Badiru,: “We must focus on making our agricultural research institutes more functional. “Yes, we have quality scientists as staff of these institutes but how well are we funding their real research mandates? I am not talking about paying salaries here. If we continue to pay staff salaries without adequately funding real research, we are at best just doing cash transfers.
“The provision of some basic infrastructure for research and actual food production activities that will enhance value addition and eventually more job creation is a burden shared by the Federal and State Governments. Modern agriculture thrives when backed by infrastructure like stable power and accessible roads, etc. “Why is there still hunger in the land despite the results? We blame our successive Federal and State Governors for paying lip services to Agriculture. The immediate past regime spent billions of Naira on Agriculture but on paper and pockets of NIRSAL, CBN officials and its cronies and not for Agriculture since it did not get to the farmers,” says Dr Ajeigbe. He added: “Fertilizer and pesticide costs have gone up by almost 100 per cent in the last 3 years; labour is becoming scarce even in the core ag- ricultural states.
When last did we have serious government interest to ensure fertilizers and pesticides are available, not necessarily at high subsi- dies but at good prices? Let’s say indirect subsidies? These are issues not being tackled.” He continued:“The Kadawa irrigation master plan by Audu Bako has not been completed. So, it is less of be replicated. If completed, it can feed at least 50 per cent of the country’s population, feed millions of ruminants as well as generate millions of direct employments. No state in the north is thinking of replicating it. “Take Adamawa, as another example. They are busy constructing overhead bridges in areas with low traffic, in a state blessed with water during the rains and serious scarcity in the dry season.
We could have built irrigation schemes to store the rainy season water for use in the dry season.” “Also, this will have a positive effect downstream and reduce flood in River Benue, create thousands of jobs and supply thousands of tons of food for humans and feed for livestock. The same scenarios are available in Kebbi, Jigawa and Niger. “With the increase in population and conversion of farmland to other uses, we must get more from less land. Irrigated land can easily triple the production. The limited success achieved with rice in the past 4 years was as a result of double cropping. “It is sad that some irrigated fields and lands are converted to abandoned filling stations in Kano. Small and medium scale irrigation doted all over the country will produce food and jobs for humans, feed for livestock and assist in controlling flooding.”
Also, weighing in, a source knowledgeable about the happenings in the political landscape said until the Federal Government tackles the problems of insecurity, economy and power, Nigeria will only be going around in circles. Our Source said: “The reality of governance has now dawned on this administration. Look at it from the other perspectives of security, economy and power that everyone is angry with. “That is what people will score Tinubu’s administration on. If you look at the number of times that the national grid has collapsed, they are not giving us light every day and they have already increased the tariffs through the back door. “What people pay for power has gone up. Those three things work together.
They all sum up these economic hardships. In some places, people who should be farming cannot go to the farms because of banditry. “It has gotten so bad that some villages in Benue, Plateau, Niger, which are agrarian communities, have completely left the farm because of the activities of insurgents. There is no talking of technical decimation; people want to see what the government is doing and that is why it is also political.”